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I just wanted to speak about personal experiences. What I know of conservatives comes from personal experiences. Most of what I've learned comes from what I read, and what I've experienced.
This is thing. Some people aren't going to like what I have to say. It's going to be seen as an attack.
I think about the siege mentality. That is one element I've wanted to discuss. One reason I brought up the Confederate flag issue. This issue illustrates the cultural polarization I saw. I saw a big siege mentality. It was mostly conservatives getting in arms over the situation. However, even with that in mind, not every conservative was upset. There are some nuances. I never saw any middle upper class conservatives get mad. The persons who were the most upset were more of the "NASCAR Republicans", working class conservatives. However, at the end of the day, there are alot of rifts, ideological, and racial.
There were certainly those who didn't want change. And it manifested itself in a siege mentality.
I notice something else. There are some who try to make excuses for things that are inexcusable. The purpose being "it's not so bad". It first it's fear and anger. And then it's making excuses. As it applies to the Confederate flag, some will say things like "other societies had slavery too".
Though I do not entirely agree with this, this was very well explained and thank you. The part I have bolded is the most concerning part about It and the It supporters: It is a fear-based culture.
Anyone operating from a position of fear is very very dangerous.
I am in Texas. Though Dallas itself is liberal, one need not go far from the center circle to find conservatives- it IS Texas, after all. Having said that, and after living in 2 very liberal west coast states, I do not see Texas as all that conservative. We have very high taxes that support a lot of programs and infrastructure, we have a major cross-cultural society, more than I have seen anywhere except NYC, you get the gist. Texas conservatives, yes painting with a broad brush here, still want to protect people, preserve the relationship with Mexico, do not want the wall, and expect government to handle a lot of the issues in infrastructure which would require taxation, and recycle. Liberals in Texas (not me, BTW) mostly do not care for open borders, Obamacare, and are begrudgingly perhaps for oil extraction because of our economy. I am the lunatic fringe in Texas, as are those who support Pres. It. Therefore, I do understand where you are coming from.....I am just not really in love with it
I lived in Fort Worth for a time. I'm in Georgia right now. Texas has its own kind of flavor. It is a conservative state. Texas has a different kind of conservatism. Texas is an oil state. It is a state with its own issues. It doesn't operate the same as Alabama or Mississippi.
Kansas does not operate the same as conservative states in the South either.
I understand Trump voters very well. They're the seniors I roller skate with on Friday mornings that have been totally mislead and easily believe everything in print from conservative media. They're low information, stubborn, and stuck in a rut of believing what they want to believe. It ruins their day if you challenge them with facts vs fantasy. Look, I love these people and I treasure every minute with them because I may not see one next week. One of my favorite Trump supporters is an 83 year old Jewish man. He's an Atheist and pro choice. He still supports Trump even though his taxes were 25% higher this year than last year.
The Trump voter is our dear friend Roger, who's had a really rough life. He's been on his own since he was 16 after his father kicked him out. He was a bit of a trouble maker and the new wife wanted him gone. He's uneducated, very racist, and listens to Rush. I don't think he's read a book in decades, and he certainly won't read the Mueller report. He's also a very decent man who buried his first wife young and nearly lost his second wife a couple of years ago. She was at the rehab hospital I worked for and he broke my heart when he was on his knees praying and crying for his wife's life. Well, good medicine saved his wife. She would have had zero chance without it. He's a good man, and a good friend and I love him dearly.
The Trump voter is our neighbors in their 70's. He's a retired cop, alcoholic, and needed medication decades ago for his bipolar issues. He's also as is his wife, uneducated, very prejudiced, and neither read or watch anything out of FOX news. We've been neighbors for decades and we are very close. I'll do anything to help them. They both have health issues and we nearly lost him about a year ago.
People are more than votes, and there are as many rich intelligent people who voted for Trump because they love his tax plan. They won big time, honestly, who wouldn't like that if you'r in that economic stratosphere?
Then there are the Evangelicals willing to prostitute every decent value to over turn Roe v Wade. Their myopic view is all they can see. Never mind that their one size must fit all is both unrealistic, disrespectful, and closely resembles an ISIS mentality. Well he's only human. Yes he lies and cheats, but they all do.
I have a friend that fell victim to the troll farms and voted for Trump at the last minute. She said that all of the negative information changed her mind. Right after he was elected she said that she had made a mistake.
There's the never Clinton's. Yes I really do understand that.
There is the lunatic fringe haters. The "nationalists" who want only white people in America. I remember one on the news saying that Trump was our only chance to have the America he grew up in. It's ridiculous, it's unrealistic, and people of all colors are here to stay.
I understand the Trump voter and I love them in spite of their political ideologies. Being tribal is not the answer. Being a hate monger is not the answer. Respect is the answer. I'm not going to lose friends over a vote.
I'll give you my perspective on some of the Trump supporters I know. I live in Trump country, so I have some familiarity with Trump supporters, specifically ardent Trump supporters.
One Trump supporter I know is a single White mother in her early 30s. She grew up in a working class background. I've always gotten along with her, even today. She isn't hateful type. She can be rather blunt.
Another Trump supporter I personally know is a veteran. Said veteran is married with a child. Whenever I've seen him post on facebook, it's of a very political nature, and of an angry nature.
One guy I know, he isn't hateful. He's of good-natured demeanor. He is a conservative. Talking to him, he seemed to make alot of excuses for Trump's vulgar demeanor. His mentality being "well, he's vulgar, but he means well". He is the kind of person who reads Breitbart and FOX News.
Where I live, there are times I can tell of someone's demeanor based on their cars. There are times I go to the grocery store and see a Trump bumper sticker on a car, and then another bumper sticker featuring a cartoon character urinating on the word "liberals". Sometimes I find someone flying a Confederate flag and find a Trump bumper sticker on the car too. I have had interactions with a few other Trump supporters. One thing I've noticed is this attitude of "we're under siege".
Yeah whatever. You have nothing to offer other than a one sentence opinion? Share your experiences and we can have a real conversation.
(Thank you all for the surprising number of reps on that post. Some were most unexpected and made my day )
"All the surprising number of reps" just proves how hateful and bigoted the left is when it comes to anyone who disagrees with them.
You TDS cases really don't understand the typical Trump voter. We're not the toothless caricatures you envision. In fact, I'm pretty sure most of us are smarter and more successful than the typical never Trumper/liberal.
Wanna know how "Conservatives" think? Read "What's The Matter With Kansas?" by Thomas Frank.
I think that would apply to Kansas. The kind of conservatives you find in Kansas aren't the same as you would find in Wyoming or Utah. The kind of conservative you find in the aforementioned states isn't the same as what you find and Georgia and Alabama.
It seems that most Americans has no clue who Trump was since the 70s.. If you where living in the North East you might have better understating about the man. But maybe not..
The midwest and south seem to belive what the TV producers cast him as.. a "successful business man".
What is most mysterious... It might just be me, but even if I completely agreed 100% with Trumps politics, just the way he acts, talks and treats others, would be a 110% NO vote from me.
A person like that, I would not want as a family member, friend, coworker, boss or neighbor...
You understand within 5 min of talking to a person like that, that he is not normal!
At least I hope you do..
In ANY other job.. he would be fired and walked out of the building with guards within a week or two.. That includes ANY job I have ever held!
And THAT is whats really scary, that many are trivializing the kind of behavior and keep telling themselves that he is just "tricking the Democrats", he really doesn't belive that, he would not do that.. etc etc..
Many held their noses and voted for him... I can accept that... but the number of Republicans who are actually trivializing or accepting his behavior is truly mind boggling. I am afraid they actually want a "strong man".. and not a Republic.
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